Awakening A Metafictive Mind
by CondorTalon
Summary: Alrighty... Self-insert? Check. OCs out the butt? Check. Future timeline? Check. Fourth wall breaking? What fourth wall? This will either go extremely well or extremely poorly. Come take a read to find out which one it is!
1. In Which I Get Stuck In Fire Emblem

**A/N: Hey guys, it's been a while. To be more specific, it's been a bit over a month and a half since I discontinued my first fanfic, Singularity. And again, I really apologize for that. It really was going to be that middle part that slowed everything to a stop, and I really do think that stopping that kind of thing before it starts is the better choice.**

**So this time, I'm trying something a bit different.**

**And yeah, I've been planning this one out for a while. I'm stretching what defines an Awakening fanfiction, in that it takes place in the Akaneia/Ylisse world, but centuries in the future. The description really does tell the whole story, and I know that this will go either extremely well, or extremely poorly.**

**But I'm throwing caution to the wind on this one.**

* * *

><p>Jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesus Christ, my head hurts.<p>

I wrench my eyes, trying to bring them to focus. How much did I have to drink last night? My entire body feels like I've been hit by a truck, and this pounding in my head won't go away. My entire body feels really hot, so it must have been one hell of a party. My eyes finally adjust to the weird light, my vision being covered with an orange glow.

Aaaaaaand that's when the first of many problems hits me full force.

First of all, I don't drink. I don't like the taste of alcohol, and I've never trusted myself to not ruin my social life with my lowered inhibitions.

Second of all, and more notably, I definitely remember going to bed normally last night, and I'm one hundred percent certain I didn't fall asleep in the middle of a street. A street surrounded by buildings that are on _fucking_ fire.

"OH SHI-"

* * *

><p>The clanging of iron on iron echoed in the alleyway. The girl jumped backward, narrowly avoiding a sword aimed at her midsection. She gritted her teeth, timing her next move to find an opening in her opponents' guard. She danced forward, bringing her sword forward and aiming the hilt onto her opponent's face.<p>

**Crack.**

She walked out of the alleyway, wiping a bit of blood from her face. She was greeted by a younger boy, rushing up to meet her.

"Sis! Are you alright?" the boy asked. He had already began moving towards her with his staff, holding it towards her. She responded by pushing the end of the staff away with two fingers.

"I'm fine. More importantly, though, I've taken care of most of the goons in this area. Where are the others?"

"They're back at the square. They told me to find you since they're just about finishing up."

The girl smiled a weary smile. She eyed her katana, bloodied from slaying countless opponents. She was tired, and wanted to get back to the capital. Thank the gods they were almost done.

"Sis... do you hear that?" the boy asked, snapping her out of her reverie. She listened for whatever he was talking about.

"...Footsteps. They're coming this way."

* * *

><p>Okay... gotta think. Or as much as I can while running away from burning buildings.<p>

Where am I? Well, that's a hard question to answer, isn't it? An easier question would probably be where aren't I? See, that question is much easier to answer.

Because I know, without a doubt, I am not still in Canada. I look down, noting that I am wearing... It looks more like a medieval peasant's garb. It's easy to move around in, presumably, and quite light. Never mind how I got into these clothes, if this was Canada at this time of the year, I'd be freezing.

So. Nowhere near Canada.

Next question, immediately following from that train of thought, is how did I get here? ...Wherever 'here' is. Given how... I couldn't have been out for longer than... three hours, maybe?

It's hard to tell, with the pounding in my head.

My train of thought is interrupted by the introduction of another person. More specifically, it's interrupted by me nearly running into said other person.

"Eeeek!"

That's what I hear seconds before I fall to the ground trying to avoid this girl that I had almost run over. I quickly sit up, looking up at the girl... and the arrow she has notched on her bow.

"Whoa! Wait... stop stop stop!" I cry, waving my hands frantically in front of me.

To her credit, she does lower her bow, possibly because of how panicked I sound, or possibly because it's plainly obvious that I don't have a weapon.

"Who... who are you? You're... not from around here." She says, and I can hear her voice shake slightly.

"Okay... uh..." I say, not really sure what to say afterward. "Honestly... I have no idea where 'here' even is, so... yeah."

I can barely make out her mouth twitching, before settling on a frown.

"Uh... right, I'm..." I say, before pausing. Actually you know what? It's not like revealing my real name is going to make a difference. "...Richard. The name's Richard."

"...Where are you from?" she continues, and I can see her tightening her grip on her bow.

"From Canada..." I say, and that reminds me of a more pressing question. "Listen, if you can tell me how to get back to-"

"Hold your tongue, please... Canada is not a place I've ever heard of."

And cue alarm bells.

This girl doesn't know where Canada is. In this day and age? Unheard of... wait a second.

Shit.

Shiiiiiiiiiit.

I have a paranoid hunch.

"Uh... where exactly are we?"

She sighs, as if the very question annoys her.

"This is the village of North Hamlet," she states, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world, "located on the regional border of-"

"Look out!" I suddenly snap, bolting my feet as quickly as I can and pushing her out the way with one hand and trying to catch the handle of the axe with the other. I come face to face with a rugged, scarred face, scowling at me, and the blade of the axe uncomfortably close to my forehead.

Have I mentioned that I'm not at all physically strong? No? Well, I'm not at all physically strong.

Also I'm pretty sure I accidentally copped a feel when I pushed the girl out of the way.

My head swims as I'm easily pushed back onto the ground. I scramble backward, and my hand brushes against a glass object. I grab it and quickly throw it in the axe wielder's direction. It shatters against his head, and I mentally praise myself for the skillful shot.

_It was luck._

Shhhh.

Of course, at best it'll blind him, but considering that my aim is poor, I really doubt he got enough in his eyes to cause him trouble.

Have I mentioned that I'm not at all physically strong? Oh yes, yes I have. Well then.

And... that is an arrow through the man's eye.

Saved by a girl I don't even know. That's fun. It makes me look real cool.

"Hmmph... At least I know you're not a threat," she says, huffily.

Oh yeah, she noticed.

"What... what just happened?" I ask, trying to clear my head, something I still haven't fully managed to do.

"Bandits... they attacked the town while all of the villagers were asleep... I wasn't able to sleep, so I managed to leave the house before everything..." she pauses, before squeaking out her next words. "I don't think there are any other survivors."

With every word that comes out of her mouth, my paranoid hunch becomes more and more of an uncomfortable truth.

"Hey," she calls suddenly. "You're obviously not a fighter." Ouch. "Can you use magic, then? Staves? Can you do anything?"

Oh yeah, she definitely noticed.

"No, ma'am. And for the record, that was an accident."

She simply replies with a huff.

"If you'll excuse me, then, I'm going to go finish what I started," she states, and promptly turns to leave.

I look at her as she walks away, and it takes me a few seconds to realize that I am completely screwed if I'm left alone here.

"Wait, hold on!" I call after her, trying to catch up.

"Okay listen, look, hey..." I sputter out, as I reach her, "Alright, so we... I know I haven't made the best first impression, but... I have no idea where I am and what I'm doing here or how to get home or anything... I'm not going to survive long unless... listen... I'm just asking that you let me stick around for a while."

She stands there, thinking it over. After a while though, she sighs, and almost reluctantly says, "Well, I guess you did save me from that bandit, so that has to count for something I guess..."

I sigh in relief.

"But you'll have to make sure you don't slow me down or anything. I'm not going to be babysitting you."

I gulp.

If I was an RPG character, my stats would probably be "jack shit in everything but Intelligence".

Does that even actually translate to a good Magic score in the Fire Emblem universe?

And yes, I have firmly convinced myself that I am actually in some Fire Emblem universe, if only because that's the most recent strategy RPG I've been playing that fits. I could be wrong, but I'll believe it's true until I've been proven otherwise.

"Right, I won't slow you down," I simply say.

And I've just screwed myself over, haven't I? Welp.

We walk at a brisk pace, and I can't help but analyze her features as I'm walking. She looks about as old as I am, give or take like three years. She has long, dark purple hair, pulled into a ponytail. Her outfit is pretty much the same as the female Archer's outfit from Awakening. Her eyes are a dull hazel.

By the way, I caught that last particular detail while she was talking to me before; I'm not staring into her eyes or anything like that right now.

It suddenly hits me that I'm actually more useless than starter Donnel right now. Wow, that's sad.

"I'm Lavender, by the way," she says, bluntly.

I nod, and start to look around for any more threats. We've moved from the burning buildings area to the burned buildings area, as most of the buildings here are merely charred wood and demolished rubble.

...

This is kind of awkward.

It's kind of hard for it not to be, given that my only traveling companion is a girl that maybe barely tolerates me. At this point, I'm honestly wishing something interesting would just happen to take away the awkwardness.

Or add to it. Just give me something.

"Halt! Identify yourselves!" a voice cries out, as we round the corner.

Wow! Right on cue! I amaze myself sometimes.

Lavender raises her bow, but I quickly hold an arm out to stop her, making extra sure to keep my hand away from chest-level.

They don't look like bandits. Call it genre-savviness, but they're not ugly enough to be bad guys.

Well, I mean that and the fact they haven't just blindly attacked us yet.

It seems that the girl that called out has somewhat of the same idea, as she lowers her sword, if only slightly.

"You aren't bandits... who are you?" says the girl, who by the way is holding a katana. I feel like this is an important detail, just by the by.

Before I can say anything (and really, what is there that I can say that doesn't make me sound like a weirdo?), Lavender speaks up.

"My name is Lavender; I live here. Or... I guess I used to. Those bandits took everything... my house, my family... but they haven't taken my life yet. And I'm not going to let them. I'm going to go down fighting, tooth and nail, if I have to. And..."

And the rest of what she's saying is tuned out as I analyze the girl and the boy (was he always there?) in front of me.

The girl, I can immediately tell, is a Myrmidon. Like, she has the outfit. That's a pretty big giveaway. She, like Lavender, looks about my age. She has long, bright green hair with bangs that cover her left eye. She's also wearing a headband with an ornate design. I can't really tell her eye color from here, though.

Not that I'm actively looking for it, or anything.

The boy is wearing long robes and is holding a staff. Three guesses as to what he is. He has the same hair color as the girl, but it's short and shaggy. He can't be older than fourteen.

"...and this is Richard." Lavender finishes, turning everyone's attention towards me.

Oh... good.

"Um... yeah. I'm Richard. Uh... I'm not sure how I got here, but I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to be here. Here as in, like, this world, by the way."

Cue silence. I can see the priest boy lean in and whisper something to the girl.

The Myrmidon girl (introduce yourself already so I don't have to keep calling you that) steps forward, lowering her sword.

"I'm Cassandra, and this is Eli," she states, tilting her head towards the boy.

Thank you.

"If what you say is true, then you're better served coming with us," she finished.

"Wait, what? You believe me?" I reply, a bit incredulous.

"Surprise you as it may, yes. It is more than likely that you are from an Outrealm," she explains. Then, sort of like a parting shot, she adds, "if you're not lying, that is."

Oh, well... duh. I mentally slap myself for not going with that. Is that even accurate? Is the real world considered an Outrealm? Who cares? Not me! Anything that makes me look less like a suspicious nutjob is good enough in my book!

"Hang on, you trust him?" Lavender butts in, "What if it is a lie?"

"Whoa, hold on," I interject, turning back to her, "You said it yourself, right? I can't fight, so what harm could I do even if I was lying?"

I think part of my soul just died saying that.

"We'll sort this out later," Cassandra intervenes. "For now, we'll escort you to the rest of our group. And you can keep an eye on him, Lavender."

Lavender responds with a 'did you mean me?' kind of face.

"Unless you feel like staying here by yourself..." I say, and I resist the urge to finish with 'and your dead parents', because I don't feel like dying right now.

It seems like she gets the hint, and she follows along, huffing.

We begin to walk in some unspecified direction.

Hey, why aren't any more bandits attacking us? Surely we would have gotten into another fight by now, right?

My attempt at tempting fate goes unnoticed, though, because we eventually meet up with two others.

On the plus side, one of them's on a horse!

"Milord," Cassandra says, walking up the guy not-on-a-horse. So he's the Lord, huh? I look at his back, and... yep, cape. Wow. Formulaic. "We've found two survivors."

She points to me, "Richard." and then to Lavender, "Lavender."

Also, I'm not sure if I count as a survivor, although I did survive that push to the ground so I guess that works?

"Richard claims to not be from this world. We think he may be an Outrealmer," Eli finishes. I hadn't heard him speak this whole time, so his sudden statement surprises me.

Both of their eyes widen at his words, and the guy-on-a-horse (it's a brown horse, and his armor isn't too heavy, so I'm betting Cavalier instead of Paladin or Great Knight) dismounts.

"An Outrealmer?" Lord guy says, as he approaches me, "And what brings you to this world?"

"That's the thing... um... milord. I'm not sure about that myself. I honestly just woke up in the middle of the street."

He seems to mull it over.

Cavalier dude (okay, can you guys like, try to introduce yourselves as soon as possible so this kind of thing doesn't happen?) approaches Lord guy (aaargh) and says, "Perhaps Tetra could help us figure out this whole situation?"

Lord dude nods.

"Indeed. We've done all that we can anyway, so let's head back to the capital. We can figure out that and what to do with what remains of the town from there," he says, and I can sense a bit of sadness in his voice in that last sentence.

"Yes, milord," Cassandra, Eli, and the cavalier dude say in unison. The group begins to move.

I look over at Lavender, and see that she has that 'did you mean me?' face again, although I guess it this case it would be more of a 'what about me?' face instead.

"Yo, don't get left behind," I call out to her, and this time it's her turn to try and catch up to me. Well, us.

"Um, excuse me... milord?" I ask.

"Please, call me Orian," he says, and even though he's turned away from me, I can totally tell that he's smiling while saying that.

"But no one else does," I respond.

He sighs, resignedly, and continues, "Yes, but it's through no fault of mine. I keep telling them that such formalities are unnecessary while we're in the Shepherds."

The Shepherds?

Okay, hold up.

Is this the Awakening universe? Is this actually the Awakening universe with people I've never seen in the games? Are we in the future?

My head is pounding again. Just a bit.

"Milord," cavalier guy interjects, "You are the Exalt. It doesn't set a good precedent, even if it is just within the Shepherds."

"Leroy,"

_THANK YOU._

"you of all people should me enough to know my principles. If people aren't comfortable enough to see me eye to eye, how can I be a good ruler?"

Leroy says nothing.

So, there's a bit of a silence again. I guess I could describe Orian and Leroy at this point. Yeah.

Orian has short blue hair (what a shock), although it's a deeper blue than Chrom's or even Ike's. Once again, I can't comment on his eye color. He looks like he's my age, or maybe like five years older, at most.

Leroy has short black hair. He also looks, like, at least thirty. Also ditto about Leroy's eyes.

Wasn't I going to ask a question at some point?

Oh, right.

"Anyway, uh... Orian... milord..."

I almost managed to do it.

"Where are we headed?"

"We're heading to the capital of Ylias," he answers.

So the name changed a lot, yet at the same time not at all. How far into the future are we?

"It'll only be about a day and a half of traveling."

I nod, and we continue to walk.

I slip backwards, until I'm matching pace with Lavender again.

"Are you alright?" I ask.

"...What do you mean?" she asks back. She's trying to act nonchalant.

"Well, I mean... you're like the only survivor of your village, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine."

"Lavender-"

"I said I'm fine!" she yells, and attention is drawn to the two of us.

Well geez, I just want to help. I sigh.

"Alright. I don't believe you, but I'll drop it for now," I finish, and I increase my pace again.

"Woman troubles, huh Richard?" Orian asks, with a teasing tone.

I don't hate you Orian, but I kind of want to.

I say nothing, and simply begin to think as I walk.

I'm... stuck in Fire Emblem. Specifically, I'm in the Awakening world, an unspecified amount of time in the future. I'm surrounded by people my age that are all in the Shepherds (none of which I've seen in the actual game), and even though by all rights I should have died to that bandit, I managed to survive.

If I didn't know any better I'd think I was the protag in a bad fanfic.

...

I am, aren't I?

...

_Shit._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, here's Chapter 1. I can definitely say this one will be a bit more interesting than Singularity. Good? Who knows? But definitely more interesting. There are a lot of different places I can take this, but I do know what major plot points I'll be putting in.**

**I feel that this idea gives me more freedom with my writing, so I shouldn't run into the problem I feared I would in Singularity. If I discontinue this one, you have permission to publicly lynch me :P.**

**Also wow, this first chapter is long. I hope I can keep the chapters this long, even if it means more sporadic updates.**

**And for those of you wondering about what was happening with the antagonist lady in Singularity, don't worry, I'll address that in this story, though perhaps not in the way you'd expect.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading. I really do apologize for discontinuing Singularity, but I hope this story makes up for it. Reviews, as always, are appreciated. Stay tuned!**

**(It's also 2AM as I finish writing this chapter. Some things never change, do they?)**


	2. In Which I Catch A Little Thief

Okay, so... why me?

We're walking briskly along the somewhat maintained road. Leroy is riding at the front, slow enough that we can actually keep pace but fast enough that we can't slack off. Eli and Orian are chatting about something or other, Cassandra is walking just a bit behind them and just a bit in front of me, and Lavender is behind me, presumably not aiming her bow at me.

I'm like the least competent protag for a Fire Emblem fanfic ever. I mean, unless the key to vanquishing evil is 'be really good at rhythm games', I can think of so many other people that I know that would be better suited to this than me. So why me?

...

This is a self-insert fic, isn't it.

Oh my god, I want to go back in time and stop myself from playing this game in the first place. Okay, no I don't, but I wouldn't be in this situation if I did.

I think. I can't actually be sure of anything right now. Best to err on the side of caution for now.

An hour later, I'm starting to really miss my music. I wish I had my phone.

With no way to charge it. So that wouldn't have even worked.

"Richard? Are you okay?" Orian asks me.

"Fine. Missing home, I guess," I reply.

And it's barely been like three hours.

"Well, we are making good time. We should set up camp, nightfall is upon us."

Uh... it's been dark for a while, how can you tell?

Is this what happens when your natural clock isn't wrecked by technology? Or maybe I'm just not well-versed enough into when 'dusk' becomes 'night'.

I'm a 21-year-old Internet addict, leave me alone.

* * *

><p>Before long we have a campfire. We've set up just off the side of the road, far enough to not be disturbed, by anyone using the road, but close enough that we can clean up and head off quickly. I helped Cassandra gather firewood, while Eli and Leroy set up the the tents. Orian and Lavender went to hunt something to eat.<p>

"So, what is your world like?" Cassandra suddenly asks me.

Uh... hmm.

"Futuristic," is all I say. She has a strange look on her face as she stares at me. "I mean like... you wouldn't even recognize ninety percent of what you saw in my world."

"...I see," she says, and returns her attention to the fire.

I still don't know how far in the future of Awakening this is, but considering that not much seems to have changed, it couldn't have been too far, right?

Actually, doesn't Awakening take place like 2000 years after the Akaneia series? Not much changed then, did it?

Woo, scientific progress!

That's about when Lavender and Orian return, dragging some wild pigs behind them.

Well, at least it's not bear.

We're spit-roasting it.

Actually, is the fire even big enough for more than one pig?

...Okay, it is. Never mind.

* * *

><p>Lavender sits beside me, though not right next to me. I debate whether or not to bother her again.<p>

"Um... I'm sorry for yelling at you earlier," she mutters, surprising me enough for me to show it.

"No, it's... uh... don't worry about it," I mutter back.

I am not a good conversationalist. I mean, I can talk to people about video games and anime all I want! But uh...

Yeah.

Maybe I should 'invent' some board games so that I'm not completely bored.

...If I can even remember them with enough detail to re-create them.

Lavender is holding something out to me.

It's a bit of roast.

Avoid thinking about stereotypical anime situations... Avooooooid...

_"R-Richard-san... say ahhhh..."_

Nope. Stop it, me. Please. For my own sanity and safety oh jesus I'm staring at her.

I quickly take the roast and look away.

I'm so good at this game, guys.

* * *

><p>Okay, on the plus side, talking with Cassandra and Eli is much less awkward. I could actually hold a conversation, even if it was just small talk.<p>

The bad news is, the time to sleep had come.

And I absolutely can't sleep outdoors. That's the main reason I don't like camping. I cannot sleep at all unless it's under an actual roof.

And this is Fire Emblem, which means a lot of traveling between cities, which means a lot of camping.

...Help me...

I sigh, before sitting up from my cot. At least it's a cot, and not a sleeping bag or a mat or something.

Fuck you, rocks in the ground, you're not killing my back tonight!

Well, that's beside the point.

I slip out of my tent, looking up into the night sky. Maybe if I go for a walk or something, I could clear my mind, or become tired enough to actually go to sleep, or something like that.

That's assuming I don't get lost in the process. In fact, that would be terrible, let's not go for a walk. Let's just... sit down at the fire pit. Yeah.

I stare at what used to be the fire. I close my eyes, and try to think about the logistics of how traveling to another universe works. More specifically, is time still going in the real world? Is my face on missing persons posters or something? I shudder at the thought. I really hope that when I get back to the real world no time has passed. If I get back to the real world.

I exhale.

...

"Can I help you?" I ask.

"Wah!" comes the reply, and I hear a thump behind me. I turn, facing my not-so-stealthy target.

"You weren't exactly being quiet, you know," I say, with my arms crossed. There had been a rustling in the bushes behind me for a while, and I decided to call out to see if it was just an animal. It wasn't.

I look at the person currently kneeling in front of me. They're wearing a hood, so I can't clearly identify them. That is, until they stand up. Now I can identify them.

She's clearly a thief, clearly judging by the hood and the dagger she's pointing in my direction. She has dirty blonde hair that tied into twintails. You know, the kind that are tied at the nape of the neck and hang down behind their head.

I just now realize how hard it is to describe hairstyles. On the plus side, since she's looking straight at me I can confidently say her eyes are brown. I think. It might be too dark to tell.

"G-Give me your money," she says.

"Please," I say, pulling out my empty pockets, "I'm the entirely wrong person to ask."

She waves the dagger at my face, trying to look threatening. "What do you think I am, stupid?"

Well...

"I know you must have supplies in those tents. Hand them over!"

"Um..." do I really want to piss off a girl carrying a dagger?

Actually, a better question is, do I want to piss off five people, all of which could probably kill me, one of which may or may not be the ruler of a country?

Too late, she's charging.

Aaaand... she's tripping. Over the log I was just sitting on.

The dagger flies from her hand and skitters along the ground, stopping near my feet. I pick it up.

Now it's my turn, bi- oh who am I kidding, I can't kill this girl.

"Are you done?" I ask as she sits up. She's rubbing her forehead, her eyes squeezed shut in pain.

"...Yes," she mumbles dejectedly.

I sigh in exasperation.

"Why?" I ask her. As far as I can tell, she's by herself, and surely she was aware that there were more people in the camp, right?

A low growling noise answers my question. The thief girl shrinks into herself. Actually isn't this a great recruiting opportunity, or something like that?

"Alriiiiight... wait right here," I say, as I back away from her. "I'll be right back. I also have your knife. So, uh..."

As quickly as I can, I head over to my tent, where I had some smoked pig stashed. You know, in case I got hungry later. I take a few strips of meat, and bring them to the girl.

She grabs the meat, and wolfs it down, as happy tears stream down her face.

"Um..." she says, "Th-thank you."

I smile at her.

"Sure, but listen. I don't think I can condone you trying to steal things," I lecture.

"Th-there's... there's nothing else I can do. My family have no source of income... we're poor, and I've tried to find other ways to make money but nothing's worked..."

I can't help but pity this girl. This girl that almost tried to kill me.

_Your weak spot for girls will be the death of you._

Shhhh.

"Then why don't you come with us?" I offer. The Shepherds, as a volunteer force, don't get paid, but thanks to the wonderful properties of 'drops', there is still money to obtain from the fighting.

Also, maybe things have changed, and the Shepherds actually do get paid by the government.

But, she shakes her head, and gives me a pitiful smile in return.

"Sorry... but I can't leave. You're travelers, right? I can't come with you. My family still needs me here."

Wait, how close is her village?

"Um... sorry for wasting your time," she says, before quickly turning towards the forest and disappearing.

...Damn, and I really, really thought I could do this whole recruitment thing. Maybe it's because I'm not the Lord of the group.

Actually, aren't I the main character, or something? Maybe I'm just bad at convincing people.

...Wait a second. I still have her dagger.

...Well, I guess this way, at least, she'll think twice before stealing something again.

And it's not like her not having her dagger could possibly-

My train of thought is interrupted by a low rumbling noise.

Oh, no.

I back up, toward the tents. The ground begins to shift under me. I take a few more steps backward, trying to get clear from the shifting dirt.

Fuck everything if this is actually happening.

The ground splits, revealing a rotten hand clawing its way up from the ground.

"Um, guys? Guys?!" I shout toward the tents.

"What's all the yelling abou- oh," Lavender is the first one out of her tent, and the first to go back in, to grab her stuff.

"What's going on, Richard?" Orian asks, hefting his sword. Give him points for preparedness, at least.

I stare down the Risen, who have fully risen (heh) from the ground at this point.

One, two, three, four.

Two mercenaries, one barbarian, one fighter, as best as I can tell.

I'm at the front. Why am I at the front?

The barbarian charges me, and I dash backward as best I can. Orian comes in to fill the gap. Cassandra has engaged the fighter. Leroy is untying his horse. Over there.

I'm now staring down two mercenaries, and all I have is a dagger. Okay... daggers aren't exactly complex. Push into thing. Thing dies. But they have swords. Those have a longer reach.

No more time to think. First one's swinging. I raise the dagger, trying to catch his blade on the hilt of the dagger.

It sort of works. And by sort of I mean instead of cutting my head off, the blade glances and embeds itself in my forearm.

AAAAAAAGHHHHHHHHHFGGHGFGHFFGHFGFFHGFFHFGFFFFFFFFFFUCK!

Luckily it's my left arm. Running purely on adrenaline, I sink the dagger into his eye.

Something about zombies and destroying the brain. I can't really think straight because PAAAAAAAAAIN.

I see movement out of the corner of my eye. More adrenaline. I duck low, bringing the full of my body into the body of the other mercenary. I feel myself tumbling to the ground. I swing wildly, catching something a few times. Probably the ground?

I right myself, and see two glowing eyes looking up at me. I swing downwards.

* * *

><p>Is this what drugs feel like?<p>

My arm tingles as Eli heals me with his staff.

The Risen have all been killed.

"How was I?" I ask, still filling a bit of pain from my arm.

"Sloppy," Lavender replies, sitting next to me.

Oh come on! Why do you hate me- oh. She's smiling. Maybe she doesn't hate me after all?

I'll count that as a victory.

"What were those things?" Eli asks. Me, I think.

"Risen, I think... Actually, there wasn't much else it could be," I answer him.

"Risen? I've read about them, but I thought... I thought they were just legends of old..." he replies.

"Apparently not," I finish.

...Didn't the Risen only exist because of Grima? Does that mean Grima is still alive? Or maybe he is dead, but the Risen still exist for some reason? Why would a 'legend of old' become reality? I... I don't have enough information.

"Where did you get that dagger, anyway?" Lavender asks me.

"This?" I say, staring at the dagger I've been holding this entire time.

...

Oh fuck.

My face falls, and I get a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"How far away is the nearest village?" I ask aloud.

Orian turns to me, a curious look on his face.

"The nearest village? Well, if you were to take a route through the thicket, I'd say about ten minutes... that way?" he says, pointing.

How can you even tell, Orian? Not important.

Why are we camping out here then, if there's a village that close to us? "Through the thicket" is probably why. Also, not important.

What is important? That's the same direction the thief girl ran off in.

Oh no.

I stand up, gripping the dagger, and dash off in that direction.

I hear shouts of concern behind me, but that's not important.

Please be wrong.

I feel leaves and branches hit me as I dash through the forest.

Please be wrong.

I can feel myself breathing heavily as I run.

Please be wrong. Please be wrong. Please be wrong.

...

I stop as I see a figure lying against a tree. A hooded figure.

That is a lot of blood.

"H-He... grk... he...lp... me..."

I wasn't wrong.

Being right has never felt more sickening in my entire life.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hoo boy.**

**I never said there wouldn't be any darker moments, did I? There will plenty of those, don't worry.**

**As for the question as to why the Risen still exist, or more specifically why they've started existing again, that'll be addressed in the chapters to come. It'll involve a plot device that I haven't seen many Awakening fanfics use.**

**I will, of course, comment on that in-character.**

**As always, stay tuned for the next chapter, and leave a review or two. Or three. Or a thousand.**


	3. In Which I Stand Around And Do Nothing

Fuck.

_She's dying._

I know.

_She's going to bleed out._

I know!

_Really soon._

SHUT UP, GOD DAMMIT, I KNOW!

Oh god... what can I do? Stop the bleeding. Priority number one.

I run toward her, trying to identify the wound.

Okay, there's only one wound, but it's pretty deep. She was stabbed right near the stomach. I can't tell if the stomach itself is punctured, but I only have to hope it isn't. I press my hands onto the wound, trying to stop the bleeding as much as possible.

Is it working? Please tell me it's working.

I feel a hand on mine, and I follow it upward to see her looking at me.

"Pl... please..." I hear her whisper.

"Don't..." I gulp. "D-Don't worry, you'll be fine..."

I don't think I'm sounding very convincing right now.

There's a rustling behind me, and I hear heavy breathing. I turn to see Eli coming out of the bushes.

Oh thank fuck, you have your staff.

"Eli, I need a Heal, now!"

"Huh? Richard, what's going on?" Eli asks, sounding absolutely terrified.

"Eli! Questions later! HEAL. NOW."

Listen, I'll apologize for being snippy later, but we don't have time for this.

"R-Right!" he finally shouts, and runs over to us.

I can see the green light start to do its work, but I don't know if that means she'll make it now.

I hope the answer is yes.

"What in the gods' name are you doing, Richard?!" Lavender yells at me, as she jumps out of the bushes. Cassandra follows closely behind, but she doesn't say anything.

I simply point at the girl.

"Who is that?" Lavender continues her interrogation.

At this point, I recall the story of how she tried to rob us, and how I stopped her by giving her some of my extra rations. Also about how she forgot her dagger.

"Is she going to make it?" I ask Eli, who's finished healing her up. She's out like a light.

"Yeah," he replies, looking at me solemnly. "But her wounds are pretty severe. They won't be fully healed for a while."

"...Can one of you carry her back to camp?"

"And what's to say we can trust her?" Lavender asks.

"Can't we keep an eye on her?" I ask back. I don't know why I'm being so adamant about this. Maybe I'm still sour about my 'failed recruitment'. Or maybe it really is because of my weak spot for girls.

_It's probably the latter._

Shhhh.

"There's a village near here, can't we take her there?" Cassandra inquires.

Oh, right. That reminds me.

"That village might be under attack," I say.

"What?" All three of them ask, with varying degrees of surprise in their voice.

"It's just a hunch. I've been having a lot of those lately," I explain. "I mean, think about it. Why would there be a Risen attack, right where we were staying? It could have been a coincidence, but I have the feeling we weren't the actual target."

I pause.

"Where are Orian and Leroy?"

"Leroy's back at the camp. He couldn't get far on his horse anyway," Orian says, as he pops out of the bushes. "Richard, since you're so bent on keeping an eye on this girl, your job will be to keep an eye on the girl. We'll go on ahead and investigate the village."

"I... hmm... alright," I finally say.

Lavender's making that face again. Just go with them, Lavender. I subtly nod to her.

Then the four of head past me.

Now it's just me, and an unconscious girl.

...

...

**No.**

* * *

><p>They reached the village after about five minutes, but they had already heard the sounds of fighting before they had actually reached it.<p>

"Over there!" Lavender shouted, pointing to one of the bigger buildings. There was a group of Risen swinging at the walls, and a few trying to bring down the doors. Without hesitation, she pulled an arrow out of her quiver, notched it, and let it fly. At that, the group of Risen turned, toward the group.

"Six!" Eli yelled, counting them out. Lavender quickly notched another arrow as Orian and Cassandra ran forward.

Eli gripped his staff. As the only healer in a battle like this, he would have his work cut out for him.

* * *

><p>I yawn.<p>

She's still out.

I stand, pacing around the small clearing. As it is right now, I'm stuck in limbo. Obviously, I can't leave her alone here, but I don't really feel like moving her is the best idea. I don't know if I would reopen the wound if I move her.

Seriously, how does healing work in Fire Emblem?

So for now, I'm just looking over her.

...

And I'm so bored right now.

* * *

><p>Cassandra grunted as she slid backward on her feet, regaining her footing and preparing to counter the incoming blow from the Fighter. As the Fighter swung, she ducked to the side, spinning on her feet and catching it with a slash to its ankle. She followed up with a stab to the chest.<p>

She straightened up, as Eli came and wordlessly healed her minor wounds.

"And to think, I thought we were done fighting for the next for the next few days..." she sighed, as she looked over at Orian.

Orian swung his sword at a myrmidon, catching it in the neck. He quickly turned, blocking a blow from a Mercenary behind him. The Risen Mercenary staggered as an arrow hit him in the side. Orian stabbed forward, aiming for the neck, and as it fell he turned to see Lavender giving him a thumbs up.

"Behind you!" Orian yelled, noticing the Risen Mage preparing a Fire spell behind her.

Lavender turned, but Orian knew she wouldn't be able to get away in time.

* * *

><p>I must have dozed off at some point. It couldn't have been for long. I stand myself up, and walk over to the girl.<p>

To my surprise, her eyes open.

"...Good morning..." she mutters sleepily.

"Uh... hi?" I respond back. "Also, it's the middle of the night. Not morning."

"I-Is... is that so?" she inquires, then lets out a grunt of pain as she tries to move.

"Whoa, hang on. Your injuries won't be fully healed for a while. You shouldn't move much." I say, placing my hands on her shoulders.

She looks up, and to my surprise, smiles at me.

"Thanks... for giving me the food... and for saving me."

What, me?

"Well, I mean, I didn't actually do the healing, it was-" I say, but she shakes her head.

"You're the one that found me. If you hadn't come this way, then that priest boy would never have healed me," she touches her finger to my chest, "So _you_ saved me."

"Well, if you insist..." I say, unsure.

"I do- agghhh..." she starts, starting to stand, but she falls back down onto the ground.

"...Like I said, you shouldn't move around."

"Umm... maybe you can carry me back to the village. My family can..." she pauses, as her eyes look downward, "my family can nurse me back to health."

Village? Oh, right! Actually haven't they been gone for a while? That could only mean...

"Yeeeeeeah, about that..."

* * *

><p>"Lavender!" Cassandra yelled, as she ran toward the archer girl and pushed her out of the way. She held up her sword to deflect the spell as much as possible. Nevertheless, she was knocked back as the spell hit her.<p>

"Sis!" Eli shrieked, running toward his sister.

"Damn it, I was careless..." Lavender muttered, as she released an arrow at the Mage, hitting it in the side of the head. "Cassandra, are you alright?" she asked, as she rushed toward her fallen comrade.

"Eli! Heal her up! Lavender, focus!" Orian ordered, looking around the village, "There may still be more Risen."

* * *

><p>"You never told me your name, by the way," I say, directing my voice behind me.<p>

"There was never any need to," she replies. "...It's Lurianne."

"I see," I say, as I continue to walk.

I'm carrying her on my back. She insisted that we go to the village as quickly as possible, but since she couldn't so much as stand up without hurting herself, I relented and told her I'd carry her. I'm moving kind of slowly, though. Possibly to keep her pain to a minimum. Nevertheless, I can occasionally hear her grunting in pain.

Also, I gave her back her dagger.

"Aaaand... yours?" Lurianne asks.

"Huh?" I reply. Oh, wait, whoops. "Oh... right. It's Richard."

"Riiiichard..." she says, as if she's testing out the word.

I sigh, and look forward. Then it hits me. If we get there and there are still Risen in the village we are just fuuuuu-

* * *

><p>"Eli, how's everyone doing?" Orian asked, pulling his sword from the last Risen.<p>

"We're... well, we're as fine as we can be," he replied, sitting down on a rock.

They looked around, surveying what remained. All the Risen were dead, but so were the villagers who had been fighting them.

"We couldn't save any of them," Eli mumbled.

There was a heavy silence that followed Eli's statement. But it was shortly interrupted by the sound of a door creaking open, coming from one of the nearby houses. The party readied their weapons.

"Wait, please!" a voice called out from the house, followed by the door opening to reveal a middle-aged woman, in normal village clothes. She stepped out of the house, and shakily walked toward the group. Behind her, a few other townsfolk stood at the doorway.

"Is it... is it over?" she continued.

"...Yes. It's over." Orian replied.

"Thank goodness... Thank you so much..." she starts, then gasps. "Milord! Where are my manners?" she says, as she hurriedly bows.

"Manners aren't important right now... we need you to tell us what happened."

"O-Of course, milord. Well, it started just a few hours ago, when..."

* * *

><p>"We're here... I think," I say, as I look ahead.<p>

"Yeah... that's it," Lurianne replies.

"Alright." I walk toward the houses, looking for the group.

"...by the time milord arrived, most of the townsfolk were..."

It's a voice I don't recognize.

"...Mother?" Lurianne whispers.

I head toward the voice.

"Hey, how's it going?" I say, as I see the group.

Too casual?

"Why, who's tha- Lurianne!" a woman who I can only assume is the mother runs up toward us.

"Mother! Are you alright?"

She nods and smiles.

I let Lurianne down somewhere she can sit comfortably.

"She's been injured," I state.

"Oh, my poor girl..." The mom sits down beside her, stroking her face.

"Mother, stop it..." Lurianne says, trying to slap away her mom's hands. "Ow..."

I see Orian coming toward me. "We should head back to camp."

"Huh?" I say, looking at him. "Uh... right. But what about-"

"Wh-What? Arken's... and Father, too?" I hear Lurianne mutter, and she has tears in her eyes. Her face is twisted into one of disbelief.

I can infer what she means by those questons. The mother's silence says everything else.

"We should go," Orian says solemnly. I simply nod, watching Lurianne's shoulders shaking. I stand up to leave, following Orian's lead.

Lavender walks beside me as we head back into the forest.

"What happened? Weren't you so adamant about having her come with us?" she asks me, with a somewhat teasing tone.

I say nothing, and she gets the hint, her smile dropping from her face. She clears her throat.

"It's not really that. It was just because I thought bringing her to camp would be better than to a village that might have been under attack," I sigh. "Well, I was right about that part."

"What a weird hunch, though..." Lavender muses.

I mean, I guess the way I justified it made sense at the time...

Mostly it was me being genre-savvy, or something like that.

Fire Emblem is now a genre.

* * *

><p>Somehow, I fell asleep almost as soon as I lied down on the cot.<p>

Well, that was one plus side.

The minus side of that was that I was very rudely woken up by one purple-haired archer loudly rapping on my tent flap.

"We're packing up!" she said, as I opened up my tent and glowered at her, "Get your stuff ready."

...Man.

So now we're walking along again. I kind of wish we had, like, wagons to ride or something.

"Man, I wish I had a horse," I grumble, looking at Leroy, who's at the front.

Orian laughs. "Maybe you should learn how to ride one when we reach Ylias."

Yeah, maybe. Or I could try to learn magic.

Basically, be less useless.

* * *

><p>"That's Castelltown, up on that small rise," Orian says, pointing at a bunch of buildings on a hill in the distance.<p>

Is that where we're staying tonight? God, please tell me that's where we're staying tonight.

"That's where we're staying tonight."

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS

We walk toward the town, arriving at the boundary of the town just as the sun sets. The inn is located in the middle of the town, surrounded by the commercial district, as best I can tell.

The inn itself is nothing special. It's so standard it's hardly worth mentioning.

"Richard!" Orian calls, handing me a key. The number 14 is engraved on it. "This is the room you and Eli will be staying in tonight. I'm entrusting the keys to you."

"Huh? Why me?" I ask, looking at him.

"Because you're older, and because Eli has a habit of... losing things," Orian says, scratching the back of his head.

"Where is he, anyway?" I wonder aloud.

"He's walking around town with Leroy and Cassandra," Orian answers. "Oh yeah, this is Eli's stuff," he continues, pointing at the staff and travel bag lying next to the wall.

I nod, and I bring his stuff to the room.

I look at the two beds in the room. They're plain, but they should work well enough for sleeping in.

I put Eli's stuff next to one of the beds and sit on the other one, getting a feel for its softness.

Actually, this is about as soft as my bed at home. This will work perfectly.

...

I guess I'll go for a walk too.

* * *

><p>I don't have any money, so I can't buy anything.<p>

...Maybe I should have asked Orian for some. Oh well.

Why am I walking around? My feet hurt. But I guess it's better than being bored.

...I'm getting the feeling I'm being watched.

Something moves in one of the alleyways out of the corner of my eye. My head turns, but I don't see anything.

...Do I want to check it out? If I ignore it, it could turn out badly for me. If I investigate, it could turn out badly for me.

...

Fuck it.

I dash into the alleyway, looking around for branching pathways that the 'thing' might have moved into. But there's only one, and it's a dead end. I look behind me, before walking into the branch.

Wait for it... wait for it...

As I reach the end of the alleyway, I hear something drop behind me. Right on cue.

I turn.

The person facing me is wearing a mask. Not like Gerome's mask, mind you, but a full mask that covers his entire face. His? Her? They're wearing a cloak, and the figure is really ambiguous, so it's hard to tell. The mask itself looks crudely like a goat. It seems to be made of wood, and the features are carved and painted on. It's honestly pretty creepy, especially considering that they shouldn't be able to see through the mask.

I stare at them, not saying anything.

I hear a humph coming from their direction.

I am now suddenly on my back. Did anybody get the number of that truck?

I struggle to breathe, as I see the figure come closer and stare down at me.

"This is the one? Pathetic..." they say. The voice is androgynous, so I can't place a gender even from their words.

Then they disappear. I think. It sort of looked like they jumped up into the sky, but it happened too fast for me to tell.

I slowly sit up, clutching my chest. I sit there for a while, trying to think through what just happened.

They knew who I was. Or at least, they thought they knew who I was. Neither of those two scenarios are particularly good for me. If they know who I am, then that likely means they're the villain (or one of the villains?). Otherwise, it's entirely possible that there's someone who resembles me, doing god knows what for the lulz (or the evulz).

Either way, definitely not a good sign.

...

I should get out of this alleyway for now.

The wind back in my lungs, I slowly make my way back on the main street.

I should probably tell Orian what happened.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: It's 1AM! So, not quite my usual 'late time' but still pretty late. I actually planned to make this chapter longer, but I realized I would never finish it because I would find a satisfactory place to cut it, so I decided to just cut it here so I don't have to keep you guys waiting.**

**Thanks for reading so far! ******There's a lot of dialogue in this fic compared to Singularity, and I'm unsure as to whether or not the writing is good on that front. If you have any qualms, let me know! **Please leave some reviews, and tune in for the next chapter.**


	4. In Which I Start Questioning My Reality

So I told Orian.

And he told me he wasn't in a position to do anything about it until we got back to the capital. We couldn't be tearing up the whole town looking for some person with a mask, and even I agreed that they were probably too fast to track.

We'd have to wait until we got to Ylias. He told me not to get separated for too long until then.

...Okay, I can do that.

"By the way, Orian, since we're here in town, can I get some gold to go buy some things?" I ask.

Without a word, he tosses a bag of gold in my direction.

"That should be enough for a meal. There's probably a bit more, too, just in case," Orian says, shrugging.

"Uh... thanks," I say. I'm mostly just surprised I was given the money without any questions. I head out of the inn and head to a restaurant I saw on my earlier walk.

As I open the door, the smell of food hits my nose.

I am super hungry.

"Welcome, welcome!" a man says as he saunters up to me, "Are you by yourself, sir?"

Uh...

I hear the door open behind me, and turn to notice two green haired people come through the doorway.

"Richard, there you are," Cassandra says, and I nod to them.

"Ah, shall I get a table for three then?" the man asks again.

"Please do," I reply. The man bows, before heading toward a free table. We follow him and sit down.

I'm looking at the menu... The menu.

Huh.

I can't read any of this.

This isn't written in English, even though we've been speaking in English this entire time.

"Richard, what's wrong?" Eli asks me. He must have seen the confused look on my face.

"Huh?" I say, without looking up from the menu. "I can't read this writing."

"What?" Cassandra butts in. "You don't know how to read?"

"I know how to read," I quickly interject, "but not this. I don't know this writing system."

Actually, I never noticed, but this writing system is everywhere. Maybe I was too busy still thinking about my predicament.

Alternatively, my mind may have been drifting toward the words 'dating sim' a couple of times.

Hey, it's the Awakening world, why not?

"Well, then, you just have to learn, don't you? Get someone to teach you how to read?" Eli says. "We wouldn't mind."

"I appreciate the concern, but I think we can save that for when we get to the castle."

They both nod wordlessly, just as a waitress (presumably) comes to our table.

"Can I get your orders?" she asks us.

Oh, I still don't know what they serve here. I mean presumably, it would be normal stuff normally found in restaurants, like I dunno.

Or maybe it's stuff like fluffy, fluffy bread with a little bit of mint and creamy goodness thrown in.

_Will anyone even get that reference?_

Shhhh.

"Can I get the roasted duck leg?" Eli asks the waitress.

...Works for me!

"Uh, I'll also have that," I say, pointing to Eli.

Also Cassandra ordered some sort of salad. I couldn't catch the entirely of what it was called. "Something" salad.

It's probably not in my best interest to point out to her how stereotypical that is.

* * *

><p>I was bombarded with questions.<p>

Questions about my world, questions about my life, things like that. I answered them to the best of my ability, without giving too much away in the process.

After all, they don't need to know how much of a boring person I am. Seriously, why me? Well, anyway.

Dinner was uneventful other than that. Duck was good. Eli eats really messily. Cassandra acts like the typical big sister type.

I learned a lot about them, too. How they were orphaned when they were young, caused by the death of their parents. I mentally noted how common that was in Fire Emblem games. At least it wasn't because their village burned down or something. I had hoped it wouldn't get that cliche, but it was actually due to some sort of accident. I didn't probe too deeply past that.

Other than that, yeah, dinner was uneventful.

So now I'm in my room. And I'm sitting at the desk, staring intently at a blank piece of paper. I'm holding a quill in my hand, and it's floating just above the paper.

I could draw something. But I'm at a loss for what to draw. I'm mostly just bored.

It's really, really disconcerting when you realize all of your hobbies require electronics.

I sigh, before putting the quill down.

Maybe I'll go for a walk again. At least my sense of direction is better in urban areas, so I shouldn't get lost.

* * *

><p>So, there's some sort of irony in my predicament, I think.<p>

"Where the f-" I mutter, looking around for some sort of landmark.

Eeyup. I'm totally lost.

It doesn't help that there's like no one still outside that I can ask. Considering it's late at night, I can't say it's surprising, but it definitely makes things a lot harder.

This town can't be too big, right? I tried to retrace my steps, but that didn't work. I've been wandering around, trying to find some sort of familiar territory. The problem is that it's all familiar to what I've already seen, but only after I got lost. Have I been running around in circles?

Wait, hold up. It's not just familiar territory, it's identical. I've seen these exact buildings before. Exactly the same, down to the placements of the door handles, as I have been walking around in circles.

That's impossible, my sense of direction is definitely not that bad. Cloned buildings? Not likely. I begin to run, trying to figure out what the heck is going on.

I blink, and run into a wall. A wall that most certainly not there earlier.

Okay, so... running into a wall at full speed? Hurts. Good to know. Let's hope to never learn that lesson ever again.

I am currently winded, and lying on the ground. This situation is almost dangerously familiar. This time though, I have the presence of body and mind to sit up quickly.

There's two of them, in front of me, wearing the same kind of cloak as that person from before. This time, though, their masks are simple circular pieces of wood, without even a single feature on them.

Creepy.

But more importantly, I'm totally screwed.

Or... I would be, except they aren't moving at all. They're simply standing there, and presumably staring at me.

A second passes.

Two.

Three.

And then...

One of them falls to the floor. Behind them, I spot another figure in a cloak, but this time it's a cloak I recognize.

Lurianne swipes at the other figure without warning, and I can see it drawing a bit of blood from them.

They disappear quickly, in the same manner as the goat-mask from before.

"Lur-" I begin to say, but my words die in my throat as I look at her face.

She approaches me, her face a shadowed scowl. That knife in her hand isn't being lowered.

"Who are you."

...What?

"I-It's me... Richard, from before..." my confusion and worry are only compounded. It's definitely Lurianne, but something about her has changed. Any snippets of her personality from before are completely gone.

"I'm not in the mood for games, Richard. Who. Are. You."

Back at home, whenever my parents would ask me a difficult question I didn't have a satisfactory answer for, I would keep my mouth shut. Because I was afraid that saying the wrong thing would get my parents mad at me. And then I'd get punished.

It's kind of the same thing here. Except now, there's a very real chance that if I give her the wrong answer, I'm dead.

And I'm not even sure there's a _right_ answer here.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I'M NOT DEAD, GUYS! I SWEAR I'M NOT DEAD! I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN ABOUT THIS, AND I'M REALLY SORRY FOR KEEPING YOU GUYS WAITING. BUT IT'S ALIVE! IT'S ALIIIIIIVE!**

**So yeah, I've been really busy with school and all of my other interests, so I was only able to work on this on and off. And I mean ****_really_**** on and off, as in one sentence or so per week. So, I'm really sorry for keeping you guys waiting for this! Hopefully the next chapter will be up faster.**

**As always, please leave some reviews, as I always get encouraged to write more when you leave them (even if they're critical in nature). Stay tuned for the next chapter!**


End file.
